Lech Wałęsa won the Noble Prize for fighting for Polish independence against the Soviet bloc, a move that ultimately helped bring down the wall dividing East from West. However, he seems to have rediscovered the comfort of a wall in his latest comments calling for homosexual members of parliament to be placed behind a wall to remind them that they are a minority and should adapt themselves to smaller things.”
Wałęsa gave an interview last week about gay rights. He is a deeply religious Catholic and complained about the the presence and activism of homosexuals: He said that he did not want them up front in the assembly and preferably behind a wall: “They must know they are a minority and adapt themselves to smaller things.” It is a disgraceful and hateful comment. However, the response of one of Wałęsa’s opponents, Ryszard Nowak, a former conservative member of parliament, reported Mr Wałęsa to the prosecutor’s office to be prosecuted for promoting hatred of sexual minorities. I have written columns and blogs about the attack on free speech in the West in the use of such laws, including in Poland, (here and here and and and here and and here and here) and the worsening situation in England concerning free speech. As noted in a recent column, free speech appears to be dying in the West with the increasing criminalization of speech under discrimination, hate, and blasphemy laws.
As reprehensible as his comments were, he should have a protection of free speech in stating his views.
What do you think?
Source: Telegraph
Do we ignore the comment of Nomo to Homo as an unspoken rule on here? Well, I don’t know about any and if I am correct in reading it, let me say how utterly sad that comment is, Nomo. Of course, you are entitled to your free speech even if it hurts others. I wouldn’t want to take it away from you nor from Walesa. Oh, to believe in one’s own righteousness; that must be just such terrific feeling, no?
Way to go Lech! Someone unafraid of the polically correct B.S. we currently find ourselves in…….
Wow…
One more item for the record, from 2006. In Poland, gay-bashing has become as popular as wife beating.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/11/opinion/11sun2.html
After the end of communism across former Soviet Bloc states, the rates of christianity started to rise dramatically, and so did the rate of domestic violence rates, nationalism and racism. Such thinks always go lockstep in goosestep.
Links to related articles can be found here:
http://shortText.com/oU81li
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that anti-gay hate speech came from a self-satisfied hypocrite. Many so-called “revolutionaries” and “leftists” often become the most reactionary and conservative once they have unchecked power, once they get their way.
He said they should be put up behind a wall, let me guess as sectioned off part of Warsaw. Contemptable.
“They must know they are a minority and adapt themselves to smaller things.” It is a disgraceful and hateful comment.”
I wonder how Lech feels about Jews?
Though I agree with the Professor and feel the idea of prosecuting him for his stupid remarks, or beliefs, is an abridgement of free speech that should not be tolerated, except in very specific instances and even the with caution.
It does teach us again the lesson that we should never make people into “Heroic Figure”, simply because every last one of us humans has “feet of clay”.
What James in LA said! Another example of what happens when you mix religion and the governing of a country.
Time is leaving the Lech Wałęsa’s of the world behind.
Bron, he was consistent about solidarity until them pesky gays wanted a piece of the freedom pie. Only crust for them, and they will eat it outside.
Thanks for your service Lech, but the clock does indeed read 2013.
frankly:
I dont know if you can say that. I dont think it has to do with goodness and badness but how your philosophy is developed and used. Is Walesa being consistant with his? Was he against communism or was he for freedom of religion?
Communism was just an impediment to relgious freedom and he may not have cared had he been allowed to worship. His sequestering of gays comes from his religious beliefs, his philosophy. It seems to me he is consistent.
Perhaps he is just not strong enough to resist the temptations posed by all those hot young gay men.
People are complex, people who are heros in one space of their life can be losers and jerks in others; nobody is all good or all bad.
There are six walls that seperate the COM part of government.
Each one of them is larger than the continental U.S. and tax dollars pay for them
Any questions about austerity?
Every “freedom fighter” anymore has the “build a wall” virus.